首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
考研
Global energy demand is expected to triple by mid-century. The earth is unlikely to run out of fossil fuels by then, given its v
Global energy demand is expected to triple by mid-century. The earth is unlikely to run out of fossil fuels by then, given its v
admin
2014-06-13
24
问题
Global energy demand is expected to triple by mid-century. The earth is unlikely to run out of fossil fuels by then, given its vast reserves of coal, but it seems unthinkable that we will continue to use them as we do now. It’s not just a question of supply and price, or even of the disease caused by filthy air. The terrorist assault on the World Trade Center raises other scary scenarios: how much easier would it be to crack open the Trans-Alaska pipeline and how much deadlier would it be to bomb a nuclear plant than to attack a wind farm?
Skeptics may recall the burst of enthusiasm for conservation and renewable power when oil prices quadrupled in the 1970s. State-funded energy research and development surged, while tax incentives boosted solar, wind and other alternatives to petroleum and the atom. But when oil supplies loosened and prices dropped in the early 1990s, governments lost interest. In the state of California, subsidies evaporated, pushing wind companies into bankruptcy.
Clean energy has long way to go. Only 2.2% of the world’s energy comes from "new" renewables such as small hydroelectric dams, wind, solar and geothermal. How to boost that share — and at what pace — is debated in industrialized nations — from Japan, which imports 99.7 % of its oil, to Germany, where the nearby Chernobyl accident turned the public against nuclear plants, to the U.S., where the Bush Administration has strong ties to the oil industry. But the momentum toward clean renewables is undeniable. How soon we reach an era of clean, inexhaustible energy depends on technology. Solar and wind energies are intermittent: When the sky is cloudy or the breeze dies down, fossil fuel or nuclear plants must kick into compensate. But scientists are working on better ways to store electricity from renewable sources.
While developed nations debate how to fuel their power plants, however, some 1.6 billion people — a quarter of the globe’s population — have no access to electricity or gasoline. Many spend their days collecting firewood and cow dung, burning it in primitive stoves that belch smoke into their lungs. To emerge from poverty, they need modern energy. And renewables can help. From village-scale hydropower to household photovoltaic systems to bio-gas stoves that convert dung into fuel.
Ultimately, the earth can meet its energy needs without fouling the environment. "But it won’t happen," asserts Thomas Johansson, an energy adviser to the United Nations Development Program, "without political will." To begin with, widespread government subsidies for fossil fuels and nuclear energy must be dismantled to level the playing field for renewables. Moreover, government should pressure utility to meet targets for renewable sources of energy.
The author’s purpose of writing this passage is to_____.
选项
A、urge the governments to take effective measures
B、illustrate the urgent demand of clean energy
C、encourage developed nations to set up an example in the energy revolution
D、elaborate the difficulties in the use of clean energy
答案
A
解析
这是一道主旨题。文章最后一段指出:地球最终能够满足人类的能源需求而又不污染环境:但是,联合国的能源顾问断言,如果没有政治意愿,这种情况将不会发生:然后,作者提出了政府应该采取的两项措施。这说明,作者写本文的目的是希望政府采取措施。A说“迫切要求政府采取有效措施”,这与作者的目的符合。B、C和D都不能表达作者的意图。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/YhK4777K
0
考研英语一
相关试题推荐
Renewableenergy,itturnsout,doesgrowontrees.Thefruitpodspluckedfromjatrophatreeshaveseedsthatproduceclean-bur
CanadiansliketothinkthatalthoughtheyarethejuniorpartnerintheirtraderelationswiththeUnitedStates,the174billi
Generallyspeaking,aBritishiswidelyregardedasaquiet,shyandconservativepersonwhois【C1】______onlyamongthosewithw
Generallyspeaking,aBritishiswidelyregardedasaquiet,shyandconservativepersonwhois【C1】______onlyamongthosewithw
Fatehasnotbeenkindtothewesterngreywhale.Itsnumbershavedwindledto130orso,leavingit"criticallyendangered"in
Innovationisawordlikedemocracy.Everyoneisinfavourofit,butdifferentpeopleattachdifferentmeaningstoit.IsEasyj
Innovationisawordlikedemocracy.Everyoneisinfavourofit,butdifferentpeopleattachdifferentmeaningstoit.IsEasyj
Wantaglimpseofthefutureofhealthcare?Takealookatthewaythevariousnetworksofpeopleinvolvedinpatientcareare
AMGEN,theworld’sbiggestbiotechnologycompany,madeitsfortunefromadrugthatfortifiesthebloodofpatientswhoareunde
(46)TheteachingofEnglishasasecondlanguage(ESL)inschoolshashadahistoryofconflictingarguments,interestinginnova
随机试题
有机磷杀虫药(OPI)的中毒机制为
企业文化
怎样认识和评价自我实现的人性观?
根据《药品标签和说明书管理规定》,药品说明书中应当列出所用的全部辅料名称的是
经营者的下列哪些行为,违反了消费者权益保护法规定的义务?()
一般情况下,会计折旧年限、房屋自然寿命和房屋经济寿命之间的关系是()。
设树T的深度是4,其中度为1,2,3,4的节点是分别为4,2,1,1。则T中的叶子节点数是()。
We______(change)opinionsbeforearrivingaconclusion.
Rockclimbingisanactivityinwhichparticipantsclimbup,downoracrossnaturalrockformationsorartificialrockwalls.Th
CarcrashesaretheleadingcauseofinjuryanddeathamongU.S.children,andthoughmostofusnowthinkofcarseatsasstand
最新回复
(
0
)